The present invention relates to the positioning of a workpiece in a vise for machining, and more particularly to an improved clip system for holding parallel plates against respective jaws of the vise in proper position to mount the workpiece during machining.
A vise is commonly used to secure a workpiece intended to be machined. Typically, the workpiece is mounted within the opposite jaws of the vise and secured in proper position therebetween using a pair of flat, metal plates known as parallels. These parallels, which may be of varying widths and thicknesses, are mounted immediately adjacent to the respective jaws in substantially identical positions on either side of the vise so that their upper margins act as reference surfaces for the mounting of the workpiece between the vise jaws. The parallels thus serve to mount the workpiece in an exact attitude while machining and it is essential that the parallels be held securely in place against the jaws in order for the workpiece to be machined correctly.
In the past, a number of different devices have been used to hold the parallels against the jaw surfaces. For instance, spring members have been inserted in the space between the parallels in pressing engagement with the parallels themselves with the springs being under compression. While these spring members have effectively served to position the parallels pressed against the vise jaws they can become easily dislodged under working conditions and hurdle through space, risking bodily injury to a workman adjacent to the workpiece. Other, more elaborate systems have been used but these have been expensive to produce and complex to use, and they require considerable amount of space for use in holding the parallels in place. Some of these more elaborate prior art holding systems have required substantial modifications to the standard jaws of a machine vise in order to implement their use and operation, and in many cases, the costs and effort to adapt those holding systems to existing vises has been burdensome. Furthermore, most of these existing systems have been devised and developed for disposition and operation within the spatial confines between the opposed vise jaws. As a result, these existing holding systems may sometimes interfere with the positioning of the workpiece between the jaws and disrupt its proper attitude for machining. A need therefore exists for an improved parallel holding system that works safely and effectively without interfering with the position of the workpiece while machining, and that can easily adapt to existing machine vises.
Accordingly, it is a general purpose and object of the present invention to provide an improved system for holding parallels properly in place against the jaws of a vise.
Another object of the present invention is to provide an improved parallel holding system that is safer and easier to use on existing machine vises without interfering with a workpiece while it is being machined.
Still another object of the present invention is to provide a parallel holding system that is easily adapted to existing vises and that is effective in holding parallels of various sizes in proper position against the vise jaws.
A still further object of the present invention is to provide a parallel holding system that is easy to manipulate and reasonably inexpensive to manufacture and implement.
Briefly, these and other objects of the present invention are accomplished by an improved clip system for holding parallels in place against the respective jaws of a vise head. In one embodiment, the system comprises a pair of specially configured clip members adapted to releasably engage a retaining plate mounted flush between the jaw and the vise, the retaining plate being formed having a slotted tab extended from either side of the plate for engaging a respective one of the clip members. Each clip member is integrally formed having a hook section inwardly disposed at an intermediate position along its length to engage the slotted tab in a forwardly direction and a cap section inwardly disposed at the forward end of the clip member to clamp flush against the parallel and hold it firmly against the jaw when the hook section is engaged with the slotted tab. The clip members are further formed each having an outwardly disposed leg section intended to deflect in a forward direction thereby releasing the clip member from engagement with the retaining plate and allowing removal of the parallel. In a modified embodiment of the system, no retainer plate is employed but instead a notched slot is formed along both side edges of the jaw on the rearward surface thereof and the clip members are adapted so that their respective hook sections are engaged with the slots on either side of the jaw through corresponding openings formed in the forward comers of the vise head to provide clamping of the parallel against the front of the jaw. In a similar system embodiment, the notched slot is provided in a recessed section formed on either side of the back of the jaw allowing engagement by the clip members and their respective hook sections without need for openings in the forward comers of the vise head.
For a better understanding of these and other aspects of the present invention, reference should be made to the following detailed description taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings in which like reference numerals and characters designate like parts throughout the figures thereof.